Check out the recaps for SOL softball teams in action Friday.
SOL American Conference
UPPER MORELAND 7, UPPER DUBLIN 0
Jocelyn Baumeister got the job done in the circle and at the plate, leading the Golden Bears to the important conference win. She scattered five hits while walking six and striking out five in the complete game win. Baumeister was 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and two runs.
“Jociey got herself into some jams but did a great job,” UM coach Scott Ludlow said. “We made some nice plays behind her, and she pitched herself out of three or four significant jams and got some big outs, several with a runner on third and less than two outs. Along with her three hits, she was big for our team today.
“I told the girls – I felt like yesterday and today were probably two of the nicest pitching performances I’ve seen back-to-back in a while. That really was a strong point for us this week.”
The Golden Bears successfully executed three suicide squeezes and also had a steal of home. Jackie Martino – who had a team high three RBIs – twice laid down the bunts, and Jenna Sadowski also laid down a successful suicide squeeze.
“We had the right base runners and the right batters up at the right spots,” Ludlow said. “We just played a little bit of small ball and ran the bases really well.
“We did a lot of good little things today. We didn’t crush the ball. We had some timely hits. We had the right batters in the right spots and executed several times. Upper Dublin played a clean game, and they threatened in three or four innings, but Jocie pitched her way out of trouble.”
Allie Ludlow doubled to lead off the four-run third, and her double was followed by singles from Chloe Kramer and Baumeister (RBI), setting the stage for back-to-back suicide squeezes by Martino and Sadowski. Martino stole home to close out the scoring in the inning.
Bean Hughes doubled to lead off the fifth and scored on the second of Martino’s suicide squeeze bunts. Gianna Fiorenza singled home Martino, closing out the scoring and putting the finishing touches on the win.
“We had a tough week last week with two losses,” Ludlow said. “To beat PW yesterday and Upper Dublin today, we knew we were going to have to play some good ball to get wins. It was a nice finish, and we still have some work left.”
Upper Moreland (12-5, 10-2 SOL) will host Lower Moreland in a non-league game Monday, and Upper Dublin (11-6, 7-6) will travel to Springfield Township on Monday.
Upper Moreland 104 200 0 7-9-1
Upper Dublin 000 000 0 0-5-1
Non-league
HATBORO-HORSHAM 5, PENNSBURY 4
It all came down to one pitch.
Freshman Kendal Leitner against junior Kaylie Capriotti. With her team trailing by one and the bases loaded, Capriotti took a mighty swing at a Leitner delivery and sent it to deep left. While players and fans from both sides held their collective breath, the ball was hauled in at the fence for the game’s final out, bringing Friday’s non-league game to a dramatic end.
Leitner escaped with a win in a contest that saw the freshman pitcher lifted after facing one batter in the seventh and returning four batters later. She left with a 5-1 lead and returned with the Hatters leading by just two and a pair of runners on board.
“She’s a ninth grader who I guarantee you has never pitched with kids screaming like they were screaming,” coach Joe DiFilippo said of the Falcons. “First of all – when you get taken out of a game, you know what it does to somebody. You’re deflated.
“For her to be able to come back and get out of it, she grew a little bit too. She’s not a ninth grader any more.”
The non-league game was a classic battle between a pair of playoff-bound teams.
“It’s the way softball is supposed to be played,” DiFilippo said. “You know what the good part about it is – I have a lot of younger kids who are growing with these types of games, and that’s what we need going into the playoffs.”
The loss was the first of the season for the Falcons, which – according to Sierra Daley – is not necessarily a bad thing.
“We had a moment where we felt like we were untouchable, and I think this really brought us down to earth, and we can go back to how we were playing at the beginning of the season,” Daley said. “The last few games we’ve had we’ve been playing kind of flat for the first few innings, and then we’ll be like – we’ve got to get runs in, and we’ll explode and end up winning in the end.
“This one was a very good eye opener, and we all needed this. Every team loses. It happens, it’s not the end of the world. We’ll be okay.”
Daley won’t get an argument from her coach.
“I said to Murph (assistant Dave Murphy) as soon as it was over, ‘This could be the best thing that happens to us,’” coach Frank McSherry said. “Hopefully, tomorrow we’ll start a new streak.”
The Falcons showed their mettle with a gutsy seventh inning comeback and came oh so close to pulling off the come-from-behind win. Daley drew a walk to lead off the seventh. Grace Daniels replaced Leitner and retired the first batter she faced but then hit the next batter. After back-to-back RBI singles to Casey Glynn and Karli Haines, Leitner re-entered the game.
Caitlyn Martell drew a walk to load the bases, but Leitner struck out the next batter she faced. The drama was far from over. Riley Mahoney – after falling behind 1-2 – drew a bases-loaded walk that plated Glynn and made it a 5-4 game. Leitner won her battle with Capriotti for the game’s final out.
Senior catcher Brittany Hubler was impressed with her batterymate.
“That was humungous, and I’m proud of her for doing it because coming in as a freshman – to be taken out and put back in, it’s a very stressful situation, especially with the bases loaded,” Hubler said. “That’s a very stressful situation.
“I just tried to keep her calm, especially since they had a lot of girls cheering, and she was getting flustered. I said, ‘Act like it’s just me and you out here. Act like we’re warming up for the game. You’ve been pitching good all week, so continue to do it.’”
Leitner had things going her way for the first six innings, allowing only a single run in the sixth when Mahoney collected a two-out RBI single. The run didn’t loom large since the Hatters had five runs on the board.
They scored a pair in the third when Leitner helped her own caused with a two-run single. In the fourth, Hubler made it a 4-0 game when she slammed a two-run home run over the right field fence.
“These games are big for us – once we get in the playoffs we know we’re going to see better pitchers than we’ve been seeing,” Hubler said. “Facing these teams and seeing their good pitching, it’s great for us to learn how to adjust, how to fix what we’re doing wrong and go from there.”
In the fifth, the Hatters tacked on a run that turned out to be game-winner when Kayla Tauber singled off the pitcher. That 5-1 lead turned out to be anything but secure.
“It was amazing – honestly, the fact that we just didn’t give up,” Daley said. “Everyone was on the fence yelling. Even the jayvee team – they were all behind us. Everyone was there for each other, and everyone tried to pick each other up, no matter what.”
DiFilippo was impressed with the Falcons, especially their middle infielders – freshman shortstop Caitlyn Martell and Daley.
“Their infield – they’re good,” DiFilippo said. “The second baseman and shortstop are two of the best I’ve seen playing together. They will be tough in the playoffs.”
“Both of them made unbelievable plays,” McSherry said. “They both had great days today. The score could have been a lot more than 5-4 had it not been for them.”
Daley acknowledged that it’s a combination that works.
“I saw her at tryouts, and I was like, ‘I want that girl at shortstop.’ I didn’t know her name,” Daley said of Martell. “We really connected.
“She is the nicest, sweetest person ever, and the first thing I said to her was, ‘You’re up here for a reason. He (coach McSherry) sees something in you, and that’s all that matters.’”
Marissa Rapino’s 3-for-4 day at the plate led the Hatters. Joyce Bloome was 2-for-3.
For the Falcons, Haines was 2-for-2 with an RBI and Mahoney was 2-for-3 with two RBIs.
Hatboro-Horsham (14-5, 11-2 SOL) will travel to Plymouth Whitemarsh on Tuesday to close out its regular season. The Hatters are one of three teams with two losses at the top of the conference standings. A win on Tuesday will ensure the Hatters a share of the conference crown.
Pennsbury (14-1, 11-0) will travel to Conwell-Egan for a non-league game Saturday at 10 a.m.
Pennsbury 000 001 3 4
Hatboro-Horsham 002 210 x 5
QUAKERTOWN 12, UPPER MERION 0
Quakertown's offense paraded its way around Upper Merion's field to the tune of 19 hits Friday afternoon.
Tori Caputo made sure the host Vikings never had a chance to do anything about it, spinning a three-hit shutout in the circle. Caputo only struck out two batters, but she didn't give up any walks and needed just 81 pitches to pick up the win.
Offensively, plenty of Panthers made their mark on the game with Sarah Stofik emphatically leading the way. Stofik went 3-for-5 at the dish, driving in four runs and collecting a third inning double and a fourth inning home run as Quakertown blew the game open.
After Abby Schwartz put Quakertown on the board with a two-run double in the third, Stofik's RBI double made it 3-0. An inning later, Syd Andrews drove in a pair of runs on a double, then scored on Stofik's two-run bomb as the Panthers put up five runs in the frame.
Quakertown added a single run in the sixth inning and three more runs in the seventh, including an RBI groundout for Stofik.
LauraRose Morelock was the table setter for Quakertown, going 4-for-5 out of the leadoff spot with three runs scored and No. 9 hitter Brianna Lefkowski was just as good, going 3-for-4 with three runs scored. Schwartz drove in three runs on two hits, Andrews brought home two runs and Maddie Moyer went 3-for-5 while scoring a pair of runs.
Quakertown (10-9, 6-5 SOL) will host Souderton in Tuesday’s conference finale.
Quakertown 003 501 3 12-19-0
Upper Merion 000 000 0 0-3-3
NORTH PENN 6, GREAT VALLEY 0
The Knights bounced back from their first loss of the season with a convincing win over visiting Great Valley on Friday.
A pair of first inning long balls was all the offense the pitching duo of Mady Volpe and Rachel Lowry would need, but the Knights tagged on a few more for good measure. Volpe spun the first five innings, striking out 10 against zero walks and gave up just two hits while Lowry allowed just one hit in her two innings.
Catcher Amanda Greaney got the scoring started with a two-run shot in the bottom of the first, plating herself and second baseman Jordan Pietrzykoski. Elia Namey followed up with a solo shot to give North Penn a 3-0 lead.
Lizzy Stark added an RBI single in the second and an RBI groundout in the fifth. Carley DiGuiseppe had two hits, including an RBI double in the fifth inning.
DiGuiseppe and Namey each posted two hits, while eight total Knights had at least one hit as part of a 10-hit effort. Namey also scored two runs.
North Penn (17-1, 10-1 SOL) will host Lansdale Catholic on Monday in a non-league contest.
Great Valley 000 000 0 0-3-2
North Penn 310 020 x 6-10-10
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 13, ARCHBISHOP WOOD 8
The Golden Hawks opened up an early 8-1 lead and then fought off a Viking comeback.
“We scored a run or more in the first five innings,” coach Frank Marino said. “We quietly chipped away, a couple of hits, a couple of stolen bases, and we were able to plate some runs.”
The Golden Hawks were without ace pitcher Danielle Walters (injury), and in her absence, sophomore Ciara Constance – who has pitched 95 percent of the jayvee games this year – got her first varsity start, notching the win.
“She did a nice job,” coach Frank Marino said. “She got the groundouts and got the popups and allowed us to stay in the game. We finally cracked open the bats a little bit and got some runs, which is tough for us to do consistently.
“I was proud of her to see she could step in that role and help the varsity and help our program for sure.”
The Golden Hawks appeared to be in command 8-1 after plating four runs in the third. Things got interesting when the Vikings erupted for six runs in the fourth inning to pull to within one.
“In the third inning, they had first and second, and I intentionally walked their number one player to load the bases and we got out of that jam with only one scored,” Marino said. “In the sixth, we were faced with the same situation, and she came to the plate again, and I thought about it, and we put her on to load the bases. Their fourth hole hitter came up and hit a grand slam. That one came back to bite me. From there, we chipped away and we were able to close it.”
For the Golden Hawks, Olivia Zoldi was 2-for-4 with a double. Kirsti Mendez was 2-for-3 with a walk, and Kayla Patricelli was 2-for-2 with two walks, one RBI and four runs scored. Marissa Thompson was 2-for-2 with a walk and an RBI. Maura Solomon was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Sarah Conroy was 1-for-4 with two RBIs.
Council Rock South (6-10, 3-7 SOL) will travel to Bensalem on Saturday for a 2 p.m. contest. The Golden Hawks – with four games still remaining – are 27th in the latest District 1 6A power rankings. Twenty-four teams will earn tournament berths.
“You start to do the calculations on the power rankings and say – what if we win out?” Marino said. “I’ve been telling the girls there’s a lot of softball left in a couple of days. If we can win out, there’s a possibility. We’ll see how we do.”
Archbishop Wood 001 601 0 8
Council Rock South 314 320 0 13
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 13, MOUNT SAINT JOSEPH 0 (5 innings)
It wasn’t pretty, but it was a win.
The Bucks – who had eight hits – benefitted from seven walks and four hit batters.
“It was an ugly game,” coach Geoff Thompson said.
Sara Yoder notched the win, allowing four hits while striking out four and walking one. She helped her own cause with a pair of hits and an RBI.
“Sara pitched well – she did the job, and we did what we needed to do,” Thompson said.
Miranda Neary added two hits and three RBIs.
Central Bucks West (9-9, 2-9 SOL) will travel to Council Rock North Monday for a non-league game.
Central Bucks West 044 50 13
Mount Saint Joseph 000 00 0
WILLIAM TENNENT 15, CHELTENHAM 0 (3 innings)
The battle of the Panthers went to Tennent thanks to an early barrage of offense.
Tennent scored at least three runs in each of the three contested innings, slugging out 10 hits as a team. Caitlyn Mitros, who had a triple, Brianna Koonce, Mackenzie Clee and Devon Fithian all went 2-for-2. Fithian led all batters with two doubles and three RBIs.
Koonce scored three runs and drove in a pair, Clee scored three times and Fithian touched home plate twice.
Megan Curtis struck out eight of the nine batters she faced in the circle, not allowing a hit and added a pair of RBIs offensively.
William Tennent (10-9, 4-7 SOL) will travel to Harry S Truman on Monday, and Cheltenham (0-15, 0-13) will travel to Abington on Tuesday.
Cheltenham 000 0-0-1
William Tennent 537 15-10-0
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 6, VILLA JOSEPH MARIE 5
The Patriots picked up their second win in as many days, rallying for the come-from-behind win to beat the Jems in a non-league contest.
“Two in a row – we haven’t done that all year,” coach Karl Knapp said. “The big one was yesterday beating Pennridge.
“We came out today, and I don’t know if they were emotionally drained from yesterday or if they took this team too lightly. They walked out to a 4-0 lead and then we got it to 4-4 and won it in sixth inning. Nobody was in it today. It’s amazing we got out of that game with a win.”
It was the second time in as many days the Patriots rallied from behind. They trailed Pennridge 6-0 and needed a seventh-inning comeback to win that one. “They emotionally stayed in that game and fought back,” Knapp said.
Central Bucks East (6-13, 2-10 SOL) will travel to Nazareth Academy on Tuesday for a non-league game.
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